A July 16 meeting between the three municipalities within the county of Westlock concerning regional collaboration went well, even if the fruits of the gathering won’t ripen in the near future.
The meeting on July 16 was a chance for the councils of the Town of Westlock, Westlock County and the Village of Clyde to sit down and start hammering out the protocol for future discussions.
It also resulted in councillors deciding on four initiatives that could be considered for collaboration: community growth, community services, regional utilities, and airport governance and management options.
Westlock mayor Ralph Leriger said it’s important for the three municipalities to work together and present a united front going forward.
“We certainly are wanting to speak from a collective voice and hope people will see that as a positive that we’re speaking as one voice,” he said.
County reeve Bud Massey echoed Leriger’s words, and said he felt last Wednesday was a “very positive meeting” with “a lot of good dialogue.”
“I think it’s very positive the three municipalities are working together,” he added.
Clyde mayor Doug Nyal was also happy with how the get-together went.
“It was good conversation, good responses and good participation from everybody,” he said.
Since the meeting was only to set the groundwork, Leriger said there is much work still to do when it comes to researching the four initiatives and how best to address them.
“We just think there are opportunities to deliver services more effectively and efficiently in those areas,” he said.
For example, with the airport, he said they want to look at what is the best arrangement for looking after the facility — an advisory group, a commission or maybe an authority.
In addition, they need to know what the airport’s growth plans and issues are, and how different management options best fit into those plans.
With regional utilities, the waste and water commissions are the primary focus.
“Were they set up right?” Leriger asked. “I don’t know that they weren’t, but I know across the province we compete for water operators.”
Operators are in high demand across Alberta, he said, and municipalities tend to poach each other’s regularly. He would like to look at how much municipalities compete with each other.
As the collaboration process continues, he said the conversation won’t stay inside the boardroom.
“We’ll be certainly interested in hearing from advisory groups and learning what all the issues are for all of those four top priorities,” Leriger said.
The next regional collaboration meeting will take place in the later summer or early fall.
